word play.

during strength training just now, i had a very interesting conversation with my platoon mates on how we ended up on THE island.

so tell me what's the difference between "conscript";"enlist" and "draft"? basically the general idea is to become part of the army. however in each instance, the circumstances of their initiation differ greatly.

according to dictionary.com...

draft - Compulsory enrollment in the armed forces; conscription
hence "drafting" recruits is basically equal to conscripting them. what does it mean to conscript?

conscript - Enrolled compulsorily; drafted. so draft = conscription

However...
enlist means to enter the armed forces usually this is used in a very positive way, with hints of volunteerism and heroic self sacrifice.

now all you bald clean shaven guys let me ask you, were you truly enlisted on 6/7/8th of January????? Could it be something else? hMmm?

On Tekong we always get to see the planes from Changi Airport taking off and heading off to the many exotic destinations around the globe. SIA, Qantas, Silkair, Thai Airways, Austrian Airlines..etc. it seems as if roots are growing out of the ground and holding me down, no matter how much i try to stretch i can't seem to fly. I really felt the "prisoner syndrome" when we began naming cities around the globe during the intervals of IMT. Stockholm, Prague, New York, Copenhagen... the world is so big but yet here i am... the only consolation being the many new friends i've made.they help to lift your spirits when you really feel you can't go on anymore.

most of us here are jokers and in a matter of 3 weeks we have learnt to imitate our officers and sergeants.
a few notable examples:
"this is very frustration. i feel very anger."
"bloody maggots...."

jason and mutiah even modified some of e army songs. from "way oh oh ya infantry" to "way oh oh ya Atten B.." oh on this point i better point out to all you future "enlistees" never EVER report sick and get Atten B status when you're in camp. "Sai Kang" is literally shit work that's stupid and a real waste of energy. just train through it... scenario 1 is you get a fever but then at least you get to go home! scenario 2 is your illness gets worse and you continue to suffer so basically you're back to square one.

Once again, we return...book in day.

Sunday morning, rain is falling
Steal some covers, share some skin
Clouds are shrouding us in moments unforgettable
You twist to fit the mold that I am in
But things just get so crazy, living live gets hard to do
And I would gladly hit the road, get up and go if I knew
That someday it would lead me back to you
That someday it would lead me back to you

That may be all I need
In darkness, she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Driving slow on Sunday morning
And I never want to leave

Fingers trace your every outline
Paint a picture with my hands
Back and forth we sway like branches in a storm
Change the weather, still together when it ends

That may be all I need
In darkness, she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Driving slow on Sunday morning
And I never want to leave

But things just get so crazy, living life gets hard to do
Sunday morning, rain is falling and I'm calling out to you
Singing, "Someday it'll bring me back to you."
Find a way to bring myself back home to you

And you may not know
That may be all I need
In darkness, she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Driving slow...

National Servitude

rush to wait, wait to rush and before you know it 14 days have gone by. sooner or later it'll be 8th march with caps in the sky and thundering shouts of "POP loh!" army ain't half as bad as people make it out to be. made new friends, learnt new things and slowly i'm getting into shape. the most commonly used word is "jibai" but its really an experience that ain't half as bad as i thought it would be. at times its even fun. well life ain't lacking any kick at all, no sir. its all about pride, prestige, hard work - same old story - just the way i like it.

Magaritas

the next time i taste a magarita will be who knows when. lazy lizards chill out with the boys n girl. after magaritas "on the house" from zhihon, guy/sijie/zhihon/etc. jokes, advice on surviving BMT, and looking back @ the past.... all i can say is i'm ready. not over enthusiastic, not bitchy and cynical - just simple cautious enthusiasm. the master Jedi seow has taught me well, this will work. i hereby pledge to serve the nation/cover my ass and that other of my section mates/prevent brain rot/get a killer bod over the next 2 years. peeps we're going to Pulau Tekong, not Iraq, not Afghanistan. so quit whinning. i have not started whinning yet, i will not start. till i have magaritas again. like in 2 weeks time. it ain't that far away. heh

drowning past regrets in tea and cigarettes but i can't seem to recall when you came along...

today i learnt that you never mix smokes with an ice blended. not that i smoke - its just an observation. the wisps of cigarette smoke drifts in the air like the smell of incense burning, over a Southern blend and a chocoblate ice blend reminiscents of the past and hopes of the future intertwined.

we're walking down different paths in life possibly leading back to the same junction, possibly not. the future's a blur mixture of hope, fear, anticpation and desperation - who knows what it beholds for us all?

yet even thousands of miles and millions of minutes can do little to change bonds built on memories that are perfect in every conceivable way. you are a part of us, we are a part of you. if fate and chance decree, things will go back to the way they were before. if it doesn't i'll still be glad to know that i had a friend like you. especially over a Southern blend and wisps of second hand cigarette smoke.

Rain... pitter patter...

i realize its been raining ever since who knows when. even taking a plane and flying a few hundred miles eastward didn't work. it found me there. rain's just like the problems in life, they're there and no matter what you do you can't run away or hide from them. you can fly thousands of miles and they still won't go away.

when you realize that the problem won't go away no matter how far you run or how hard you try to hide, you've just got to deal or live with it. the rain? that's simple, one simply pulls on a ski cap and coat before going out into it, breathing in the freshness of the cold damp hair. or one can simply put on the music of Sinatra or Nat King Cole and laze under the warm comforters while staring out into the rain.

for everything else? you just face it with a smile and hot blooded enthusiasm. i've reconciled myself with the problems and i realize that some of them will always be there; you learn to make them a wholesome part of your life; while others - lets just say they never really were there. it just doesn't work to go out and look. rick from Casablanca says it for me, "Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine" that's the way its supposed to work - like magic.

and another vintage song from that vintage classic...
Frank Sinatra "It had to be you"
It must have been, that something lovers call fate
Kept me saying: "i have to wait"
I saw them all, just couldn?t fall - ?til we met

belated cheers to the year ahead.

Happy New Year - maybe not? maybe yes.

over the next few months, life will be tough. i'll bleed, i'll sweat but i will not cry and i will not drop out. ask yourself what do you want out of the whole experience. what you're going to tell people when they ask you what you did. is it going to be a meek "i was a pussy" or a proud "i kicked some fucking ass" ?
if you wanted to be a pussy you should have just went AWOL to Canada and fucked off instead of wasting two long years of your life.

i'm going in. i'm not going to mop about and complain about all the things i could do instead of going to the army. i'll serve the nation to the fullest and fulfill my debt of honor and duty over the next 2 years, to earn my citizenship and the right to leave and be able to return. i'll chiong my guts out, lay it all on the line, no holding back. at the very least i'll get the returns of a hot bod ready to sizzle on Kuta when i'm released. no matter what i'm not quitting and i'm not going to indulge in self pity. no one can bleed me dry apart from myself.

got a few loose ends to tie up before i'm ready. over the next few days i'll get them done. then, i'll be ready to commit to serving the nation since i won't get to do it ever again after that when i'm living abroad.